Naruto: The Life Changer-Chapter 141: []:Ichiraku

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"You were just doing your job, Iruka-sensei!" the boy protested. "Hands-down, you're the best sensei at the Academy-dattebayo!"

"Thanks, Naruto." The chunin chuckled, honestly touched at the boy's high opinion of him. "But I should have taken my concerns to the Hokage when they first happened. As it is, as I was the one to bring my worries about the traitor Mizuki to Hokage-sama's attention, I'm not going to be punished. Instead, from here on out, the entirety of the Academy staff will be made to take at least one mission outside of Konoha every two weeks in order to impress upon us the realities of shinobi life and why some things need to be taught in the Academy."

"Cool. So we may be on the same mission some day?" the blond smiled at that.

"Possibly." Iruka allowed. "But most genin do basic D-Ranks inside of Konoha in order to build up experience at working as a team for quite some time before even High-D-Ranks, like that escort mission that Ayame-chan left on to get ingredients, are made available to them." fɾēewebnσveℓ.com

"Err...aren't D-Ranks basically chump-change missions?" Naruto asked, looking concerned. "How'll I pay my utilities with those?"

"All shinobi of Konoha get a basic salary, depending on their rank and if they live with a clan or not, in addition to their mission pay, Naruto." Iruka explained patiently. "You'll have more than enough to pay for them. Plus, even if you only do one mission a day with your team, there's nothing stopping you from taking a solo mission so long as it's one that lone genin can take."

"That's a relief." Naruto sighed in relief. "Wait, why would being in a clan affect your pay?"

"If you're a part of an active Shinobi Clan, you generally have to offer up a portion of your pay as a tithe to help support the clan itself. In exchange, the clan generally provides a residence and general utilities and some other benefits for their shinobi." The chunin told him. "That ups the amount they receive slightly to accommodate for it. You, as another example, live alone, with no dependents or caregivers, so the amount you should receive is much higher. If you don't get any pay, let the Hokage know, OK?"

"Gotcha, Iruka-sensei!" Naruto agreed. "By the way, can I get into the genin's area of the library yet?"

"Afraid not just yet. You have to be assigned to your Jonin-sensei and team before you're considered a fully qualified genin." Iruka shook his head. 'Or rather, not until you pass your Jonin-sensei's test.' He added silently.

"Aw man. How am I supposed to use my swords in any kind of real fight with only the self-taught cr...crud I've been able to learn on my own?" the boy grumbled.

"You can fight well enough without them, Naruto." Iruka laughed and ruffled the boy's hair again, choosing to ignore the near-miss, earning a whine and a pout from the blond boy. "Learning sword styles takes a lot more time than throwing shuriken or using a kunai. Even with your improvements, I doubt that a few extra days of training would change much in that area."

"OK, I guess you're right, Iruka-sensei..." Naruto sighed. He was willing to bet his [Gamer] abilities would prove that theory wrong...if he could use the damned thing!

After chatting for a few more minutes, Iruka left to report to the Hokage. He'd been temporarily transferred to the Hokage's office as his assistant for mission assignments, which was actually a step up from being a teacher in both prestige and pay, until the new school year started in a few months and he was assigned a new class of shinobi aspirants.

Naruto, left alone at last, eyed the stupid timer that only he could see, which was counting down to his [Gamer] power coming back online fully. It had barely been sixteen hours and he was going nuts wondering exactly why the hell his power needed to 'Version Up', whatever the hell that was. Obviously it was some kind of update, but why couldn't it come out and say that? Stupid reality-breaking power...

Shrugging, the boy decided to go show off his hitai-ate to Ayame, who was probably back from her errand by now. As he walked through Konoha, he mentally rolled his eyes at the increased angry glares that the villagers were giving him with the addition of his ninja headgear. Seriously, didn't they have anything better to do than increase the level of his [Detect Bloodlust] skill?

Granted, it would be damned useful on missions outside of Konoha, but having to constantly deal with that little, mental nudge that someone, or rather a lot of someones, were glaring at him from multiple directions with the desire to kill was fairly distracting at first, disheartening after a while, and was currently more than a bit irritating.

No sooner had he arrived at Ichiraku Ramen was he swept up in a glomp by Ayame, who was squealing about how proud she was of him for graduating at last. Naruto would have replied, but he was a bit busy suffocating from having his face plunged into his older-sister-figure's breasts.

"Ayame, you may want to let him go." Teuchi remarked in amusement. "Otherwise we'll lose our best customer."

Letting out a squeak of shock, the girl released a blue-faced Naruto, who started gulping in sweet, fresh air.

"S-Sorry, Naruto-kun!" the brunette apologized, red-faced in embarrassment and mortification.

"It's...OK, Ayame-nee." Naruto replied after a moment. "Just...try not to suffocate me again, ne?"

"Sure thing. Now let me see this..." Ayame peered at the hitai-ate. "Hmm. Looks like Iruka-san did a good job of looking after it. Congratulations, Naruto-kun."

"Hehehehe..." Naruto preened at the praise. "No going back to the Academy for me!"

"Have an Uzumaki Special on the house, Naruto." Teuchi said, placing a bowl on the counter. An Uzumaki Special was, to put it simply, a large bowl with almost every ingredient you could put in ramen included, with an extra thick and nutritious soup.

Not being one to pass up free food, especially Ichiraku Ramen, Naruto sat down and tucked in with relish. As he ate, he felt completely at peace. Life was good.

The Next Day, Evening

Training Room, Amekage Apartments

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